The present invention relates generally to cable connectors used in a local area network, and more particularly to connectors for a 10BASE-T standard Ethernet-type network that requires a light-emitting diode to indicate the status of the connection. Still more particularly, the present invention relates to a telephone-type modular jack that has been improved to include a light-emitting diode within the body of the jack.
More than one-half of the local area networks ("LANs") in the United States employ the 10BASE-T standard for Ethernet-type LANs operating under the IEEE 803.2 protocol. The 10BASE-T standard LAN transmits over low-cost, voice-grade, unshielded twisted pair cabling. It connects using standard telephone technology with convenient telephone-type plugs, designated "RJ45" in the industry, at the office wall and at the back panel of the computer.
The 10BASE-T standard requires a light-emitting diode ("LED") to display the status of the LAN connection ("link status") and provides for several optional LEDs to display polarity and other transmission information.
The highly competitive market for ever smaller personal computers having increasingly greater processing capabilities drives computer manufacturers to design computers with a greater number of features and to consolidate these features, where possible, on the computer's motherboard. The edge of the motherboard, however, typically is crowded, and there is not sufficient linear space along the edge for the addition of a RJ45 connector and a LED, as required by the popular 10BASE-T standard.
Hence, it would be advantageous to devise a 10BASE-T Ethernet-type LAN connection that does not require the linear space of an RJ45 modular jack adjacent to a LED, so that the LAN interface can more easily be added directly to the motherboard.